Guard Ben Gordon looks to make his mark on Warriors’ bench

Updated 3:57 pm, Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Ben Gordon heads to a photo shoot during Golden State Warriors' Media Day in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, September 28, 2015.

Ben Gordon heads to a photo shoot during Golden State Warriors' Media Day in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, September 28, 2015.

Photo: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle

Guard Ben Gordon looks to make his mark on Warriors’ bench

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As last season was winding down — Ben Gordon’s sixth straight without making the playoffs — the 32-year-old combo guard heaped some of the responsibility on himself and took immediate action.

Gordon hired a chef and began experimenting with a vegan diet. For about three months, the 2004 No. 3 overall pick ate mostly avocados, oatmeal, textured vegetable protein and pastas, losing about 15 pounds and gaining incalculable amounts of energy.

By the time Gordon was congratulating Warriors players on their championship this summer in Las Vegas, he was already off the diet, but his commitment was obvious to team captains Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala.

“I just thought his mind was in a great place and that he could be a great addition for us,” Iguodala said. “As you get older, you understand winning can help you as a veteran player with just extending your career. It gives you a better perception of you when you’re going through free agency as you get older.

“He’s in that right frame of mind, and I think he’s looking forward to trying to help us out in any way possible with shooting the ball.”

Curry and Klay Thompson do plenty of three-point shooting with the first team, but the Warriors have been looking for a reliable shooter on the second team for years. Enter Gordon as a 2015-16 training-camp invitee.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder has averaged 14.9 points and 40.1 percent three-point shooting during his 11-season career. Gordon hasn’t averaged double-digit scoring since 2012-13 and hasn’t made the playoffs since 2008-09, but he’s a fearless shooter.

He twice has matched the NBA record for most three-pointers without a miss (nine), a record he shares with Latrell Sprewell. Gordon’s 246 three-point makes are an all-time record at the University of Connecticut, which produced Ray Allen — the NBA’s all-time leader in three-pointers.

“Obviously, this team is a winning organization,” Gordon said Tuesday, after the Warriors’ first day of training camp. “The style of play fits me. They don’t have a guy on the bench who shoots a high mark from the three-point line.

“I just want to come here and see if I can be in a winning situation. The past few years for me have been tough, but I think I fit in well here.”

Gordon isn’t fooling himself about the challenges that he faces. The Warriors have 13 guaranteed contracts, and James Michael McAdoo is considered a lock to make the roster. That leaves six players competing for one spot in camp.

Gordon has “been around a long time, but he’s still got gas in the tank,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “What I like about Ben is that he’s a good shooter and scorer, and he can play off of Shaun (Livingston) and Andre. He’d be a good fit.”